Acer palmatum 'Red Pygmy'

My A.P.R.P. gets filtered morning and early afternoon sun and no evening sun and, since we're in a river valley near Vancouver, that is probably a lot less than what your tree gets in California. The Vertrees book "Japanese Maples" says the spring and early summer color of red-maroon holds well through hot weather, deepening in late summer to a more purplish tone. "In direct sun, it will bronze somewhat late in the season. However, the color holds much better and sunburns less than the older standard cultivar 'Atrolineare'." So, while the leaf form of yours suggests Red Pygmy, it doesn't have the expected color. Would we expect more greening of the leaves if you reduce the sun exposure? I am not anywhere close to expert but I wonder if this is a variation that is not true to type. Mine is a grafted specimen from a reliable supplier. Maybe your supplier would be willing to exchange if red is what you want.

 

I just got in this A.p. 'Red Pygmy' - a tiny little graft. To my delight I saw it had a samara, and on closer inspection - well, take a look!! Funky!

 

Wow K4 - that IS funky! Coolio! I hope you get more seeds like that. Maybe you could name your own cultivar. :)

 

I would have to name it 'K3', since you only get 3 seeds!

 

We live in So. Calif and have always loved Japanese maples. I have a planter area in full valley sun, is there a dwarf variety that we could plant?

 

A.p. 'Sharp's Pygmy' comes to mind. It creates a bonasi effect with no pruning, it only gets to about 3ft. tall, and its tough as nails! In fill sun, the leaves get an orange tint on the edges - very pretty! A.p. 'Beni hime' is another dwarf that would do well. It has red leaves and forms a bushy mound no taller than 3ft.

Hope that helps!

 

here is my Acer palmatum 'Red pygmy'. pictures taken 27.04.2008

 

May 2008, May 2009, August 2007, October 2007

 

Here is a spring photo of a 'Red Pygmy' I bought at a local nursery last fall. I watched it most of the year to see if it lost its red, but it held so I bought it. They kept it in mostly shade. My recollection is that its fall colors were reds with orange tones. I've put it in a relatively sunny location, for my property.

 

I'm really enjoying this one. Someday there will be more greenery growing in the background so that the tree will pop more.

 

Here are the fall colors for 2011

 

Interesting. My Red Pygmy did green out this year for the last 3-4 months, before turning an utterly saturated, glowing blood-red for about 3 weeks. It gets morning sun, afternoon shade after about 2 pm.

 

Here is a photo of what it did after a fairly uninspiring year of color:

 

Hi,

This one survived a particularly dreadful winter. In the background, a Sango-Kaku on the left (very healthy so far), on the right it's not a maple but a Viburnum sargentii.*

 

Can anyone tell me whether Red Pygmy is very slow to leaf out in the spring? The buds on all my other maples are either swelling or opening, but the buds on my Red Pygmy look as if they're either still dormant or didn't make it through the harsh winter.

 

Iirc, 'Red Pygmy' leafs out at the same time as most of my Japanese maples, neither early or late.

 

Its worth noting that in my climate red pygmy and koto no ito have very small buds that don't swell and get large early (well before opening) like Atrolineare and Willow Leaf.

 

Thanks, JT. This gives me hope.

 

Red Pygmy Update: It seems that the extremities have died back, but there are now signs of new growth along the trunk and on some of the branches. I'll wait and see. It's been in the ground for nearly two years and I'd hate to lose it. The A. p. Shindeshojo next to it is thriving and fully leafed out. Any advice?

 

Just wait and see, most likely the result of the harsh winter as you suspected. Prune out all the dead wood making sure it is dead first and give the tree a good mulch. You may lose some of the shape but it is entirely possible for a JM to suffer major limb dieback in the first or second winter and still go on to live a long and healthy life.

 

Thanks very much, maf. I'll keep you posted.

 

I would prune off any dead wood in a couple of weeks. Protect the tree from any frost, because it may not be able to handle any stress or additional setbacks. Use a balanced organic fertilizer, less is best with maples. Keep it watered if we experience a harsh and dry summer to reduce the chances of drought stress. Then in late July, use 0-10-10 to harden off new growth and prepare the tree for winter. Use it again in September. I have found that 0-10-10 improves winter hardiness and promotes back budding. Give it a little extra mulch in the fall to protect the roots. If its in an area that gets hit with winter wind, then consider driving some stakes in the ground and attach a burlap wind break using heavy duty staples. Hopefully this will allow the tree to catch up and regain its strength.

 

Thanks for the advice, JT1. I'll let you know how it all turns out.

 

I love this little tree. Mine is only about 18" tall at the moment but it has such a nice shape and will grow into a beautiful tree. It only gets dappled morning sun right now because there are some Azaleas that were growing up in front of it but I trimmed the tops of them down in hopes of getting a bit more sun to the Pygmy. Its pretty well all green right now and may be until it gets taller than the Azaleas. It was still in the pot last summer and got good morning sun so it stayed more red.

 

I have this one close to my Waterfall for a wonderful contrast of colour.
I have done this so I can look through one to the other. It works for me.